


Mystery books and a pinch of confetti

by AlleyMichaelis



Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Alternate Universe - Library, Bad Flirting, Black Organization Does Not Exist (Meitantei Conan), Bookshop Worker Shinichi, Fluff, KaiShin Secret Santa 2020, Kinda, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:47:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28183389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlleyMichaelis/pseuds/AlleyMichaelis
Summary: “Would this be the one you’re looking for?” The employee- Kudo, said, holding out the book Kaito had in fact been looking for. He resisted the urge to answer back 'that would be you, sweetheart'.orWhen Kaito accidentally destroyed his best friend’s favorite book, he wasn’t expecting to find the man of his dreams working part-time in a bookshop in the heart of Beika. He wasn’t complaining, though; After all, Lady Luck was always on his side.
Relationships: Kudou Shinichi | Edogawa Conan/Kuroba Kaito | Kaitou Kid
Comments: 8
Kudos: 181
Collections: dcmkkaishinevents kaishin secret santa 2020





	Mystery books and a pinch of confetti

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kitsumu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitsumu/gifts).



> Prompt: Shinichi works part time at a bookstore, and Kaito is the client who needs help searching for a book (the book and the circumstances are up for the writer), Kaito comes daily to talk to him after their first interaction.
> 
> This is my gift for you, Kitsumu! I hope you like it!
> 
> Thanks to Abby for beta reading!

It all began with a mistake, a failed magic trick, and a bunch of confetti. It truly wasn’t Kaito’s fault that everything went downhill, right?

Oh, but it so was. According to Aoko, that is.

(Or according to anyone but Kaito, if we’re being honest, it definitely was his fault that Aoko’s favorite book burnt down to ashes, considering that the event that led to its destruction was a magic trick that went very,  _ very wrong _ . Not even the ever impartial Hakuba could take his side on this one.)

Immediately after the burned book incident, Aoko took it upon herself to yell at him for the better part of two hours until she stopped to take a breath and Kaito took the opportunity to offer to buy her a new one. So that’s how he ended up outside a tiny little bookshop in the heart of Beika, trying to replace his best friend’s book with a new one. As it so happened to be, the book in question was a hard one to acquire, at least in Japan. His incessant research online led him to this place, as it was supposed to be the only shop in Tokyo in its possession.

Honestly, Aoko just had such weird tastes. And that was coming from  _ Kaito _ .

He went into the bookshop and a tiny bell above the door signaled his arrival, mimicking the occidental style the shop favored. The shop was somewhat tiny, as in ‘not as big as Kaito was used to’ tiny. It was nicely decorated with soft glowing lamps, and a few tables and chairs so people could sit and read whatever they bought. The first thing he did was go to the counter but when he found it empty, he changed his tactic to a more direct approach and dove into the bookshelves. It couldn’t be so hard to find the bookshelf featuring books on ancient pagan traditions in the Nordic countries, right?

Half an hour later, he was proven wrong. The damn book was hiding from him just to mock him- Kaito was sure of it. He was standing on his tiptoes, trying to reach the highest shelf because  _ of course _ the damn thing had to be the farthest from anyone’s reach, when someone spoke behind him.

“Please, allow me.” Said the voice. Once Kaito backed down, the guy put down the tiny stool he was carrying and climbed on top of it to reach the top shelf. “Is this the one you were looking for?”

The guy held out the book. The cover was green, just like Aoko’s had been, but the title was different. Kaito sighed. “No, it isn’t.”

The guy hummed in sympathy and returned the book to its shelf. “What are you looking for?” He asked, stepping down from the stool.

Deciding the title was too long to remember and it wouldn’t be nice of him to just throw the long-ass name to the employee, Kaito offered him the paper with the book’s name scribbled on. “This.”

The guy accepted the little piece of paper being offered to him and stared down at it with a thoughtful face. Now that Kaito got a good look at him, he was straight up gorgeous. Sharp face, blue eyes, and an interesting choice of haircut. All things considered, the guy could be Kaito’s twin, if not for his different hair. Kaito’s was messier. Also, he was wearing what Kaito assumed to be the bookshop’s uniform, a simple green cardigan with a name tag over a black turtleneck. Kudo Shinichi, it read. Well then, Kudo looked amazing in that blazer. 

“You’re looking in the wrong section. This section is for myths and legends but this book is not about any kind of folklore.” The guy- Kudo- explained patiently. Kaito blinked dumbly.

“Then what is it?” He asked, again, dumbly. Kudo smiled at him reassuringly.

“Religion.” He checked the paper again. “But you won’t find it there either, this is a special edition, we have it in the back next to our other specialty books. If you give me a moment, I can get it for you.”

Kaito nodded and Kudo disappeared between the bookshelves. When he initially entered the store, Kaito thought it was tiny, but that perception was shattered after getting lost among the apparently endless rows of books. What the store lacked in width, it more than made up for in depth. Having nothing else to do, Kaito walked back towards the counter to wait for Gorgeous Bookshop Employee. He appeared back after a few minutes.

“Would this be what that you’re looking for?” Gorgeous Guy said. Kaito resisted the urge to answer back  _ that would be you, sweetheart _ .

“It is, thank you.” He said instead, accepting the book when Kudo offered it to him to examine it. It definitely was the one, Kaito remembered vividly watching the same cover being swallowed by flames just a few days ago. He turned it around to check the price, and he almost choked.

“Don’t you have some kind of discount?” He asked with a grin, trying to maintain a charming expression and (for once) failing spectacularly. Poker face be damned, money was a serious deal.

“We have a senior citizen discount,” Kudo answered nonchalantly,

Kaito seriously considered leaving the book where it was and returning the next day disguised as a proper senior citizen. Kudo raised an eyebrow, and Kaito abandoned the idea with a sigh. “Do you take credit?”

Besides, Aoko would kill him if he delayed another day.

Kudo fetched a paper bag for him from behind the counter. “So, are you a medieval Europe fan?”

“No, it’s for my friend. I sort of destroyed hers.”

“Well then, let’s hope you don’t destroy this one because it’s the only copy we have and you don’t want to hear what our importation fees are,” Kudo said matter of factly. Kaito grinned at him and took the bag.

“Thank you for your help, you’ve been a ray of sun in the middle of my darkest day.” There was a counter between them that blocked Kaito from trying a chivalrous bow and hand kiss, but it didn’t stop him from making a red rose appear out of thin air. Kudo looked mildly surprised at the gesture, but he accepted the rose being offered to him with a blush and  _ oh my, _ what a pretty sight to behold.

“There’s no way you had that rose hidden for so long without crushing it,” Kudo said after a few moments, clearly having decided on that after a few tries where he opened and closed his mouth like an adorable golden fish (scratch that, Kaito didn’t want to associate anyone with a fish, let alone someone who he planned on seeing again). Kaito beamed at him.

“How rude of me. Allow me to introduce myself: Kuroba Kaito, magician extraordinaire.” And then he made a whole show out of his trademark confetti bomb. Kudo was not amused at that.

“You’ll have to clean that.” He frowned, staring at the hundreds of little colorful papers lying on his floor. Kaito never lost his smile.

“Not to worry.” He snapped his fingers, dropped a smoke bomb and when the smoke dissipated seconds after, the floor was impeccable. Kudo, at last, seemed surprised by that.

“Huh, and to think I never quite liked magic.”

That made Kaito lose his poker face.

“What do you mean you don’t like magic?” He squeaked indignantly. Kudo shrugged.

“It’s just deceptions, really. People go to magic shows to be tricked and lied to.”

“Magic makes people happy! You’d know if you came to one of my shows.” Kaito proposed. 

Kudo rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right. If you’ll excuse me, I have other customers to help.” 

Kudo left the counter and disappeared again amongst the bookshelves.

* * *

The next day, Kaito found himself outside the same bookshop with the purpose of charming Kudo into agreeing to go on a date with him (and a more credible excuse to be there).

The bookshop was emptier than the day before, and as soon as the bell above the door rang, Kudo looked up from his book. He had been sitting by the counter, a mug in his hand. The smell of coffee filled the air.

“Welcome, can I help you with something?” Kudo said, promptly closing his book.

“I think you can, yeah.” Kaito smiled at him as he got closer to the counter. Recognition shined in Kudo’s eyes.

“You again?” Kudo’s eyes were wide open with surprise.

“I sort of need help with a book.”

“What kind of book?”

“A magic one.” Kaito grinned. Kudo raised an eyebrow, clearly disinterested.

“Oh yeah. I forgot you said you’re a magician.” Ouch. “Magic books are over there, do call me if you need anything.” He pointed at a bookshelf at the right, deeming Kaito not worthy enough to stand up for, and got back to his reading. Kaito deflated, picked a hard copy of an Arsene Lupin tome, and paid for it all within ten minutes. Kudo said his goodbyes without even making eye contact.

Still, it wasn’t all worthless. By the looks of it (and the profound attention he paid to the book in his hands) the gorgeous bookstore employee was a Sherlock Holmes fan.

* * *

Kaito returned to the bookstore the next day, hope restored and refueled.

“What do you need this time?” Kudo asked him as soon as he saw Kaito. He didn’t even look baffled by the magician’s presence anymore. Resigned, maybe.

“A book,” Kaito grinned.

“And what book would that be?”

“It’s my friend Hakuba’s birthday, you see.” No it wasn’t, his birthday was in August and Kaito got him a single sock with his face on it. “And I want to give him a novel. He’s a detective, sort of.”

Well, at least that wasn’t a lie. Kudo perked up with interest. “Is your friend by any chance Hakuba Saguru?”

Kaito wasn’t expecting that. “Yeah, do you know him?”

Kudo nodded. “We’ve met a few times on crime scenes.”

Kaito blinked twice, waiting for an explanation that didn’t come. 

“Crime scenes?” He repeated, seriously rethinking when had his life gone so wrong that he ended up crushing hard on a real-life Joe Goldberg.

A faint blush colored Kudo’s cheeks. “I have a tendency to walk in on crime scenes at least once a week and I end up helping the police solve it. Hakuba-san helped in a few of those, too.”

Not a murderer, then. But a detective. Kaito could work with that.

“So, Detective.” He grinned. “Any book ideas for a fellow detective that I like way less than I like you?”

Kudo’s whole face lit up. “As a fellow detective, Hakuba-san must be a mystery fan. There is no better mystery novel than Sherlock Holmes. Or, well, there is no better novel at all.”

After that, Kudo talked about what made Holmes so great for around two hours. Kaito left the bookshop with a box full of the previously mentioned character’s volumes. He donated them to a public library, the image of Kudo’s smile burnt into his brain (as well as fifty different facts about Holmes).

* * *

On the fourth day, Kaito claimed to be looking for a novel for his mother. The fifth, for Jii-chan. The sixth, he said he lost a very important yen somewhere around the bookshop, so he spent the whole day “searching” for said important yen in the vicinity of the counter (and if by doing do he got the opportunity to talk to Kudo all day long, of course he didn’t plan on that). The seventh day, Kudo didn’t even question Kaito’s presence anymore. Two weeks after, Kudo learned to expect Kaito just after his classes ended (and sometimes a little before that). Three weeks into their little routine, and Kaito didn’t get lost inside the bookshop anymore. Kudo didn’t hesitate to take advantage of that.

“Kuroba, could you show this lady the way to the poetry section?” Kudo asked. He was talking to a group of kids that were looking for reading that their teacher had recommended.

“Sure.” He said to the true, paid employee; honestly, by the amount of time he spent on that bookshop and the quantity of work he did, someone ought to pay him handsomely. Kaito turned around and smiled charmingly at the girl in question, a young girl with brown hair who was no more than fourteen years old. “If you’d be so kind to follow me, m’am.”

The girl blushed hard.

As Kaito led her towards the poetry section, the one closer to the window, he noticed that it was already dark outside. His whole day had been spent at that bookshop again, surrounded by the smell of new books, dozens of mugs of (bitter, awful,  _ how the fuck does Kudo even like that _ ) coffee, and Kudo’s laugh. Kaito couldn’t find it in himself to care.

“Hey, look!” Kaito called excitedly, looking at the tiny snowflakes falling from the sky. He stopped walking to look at them, and the girl who had been walking behind him stopped as well. It was the first snowfall of the year.

“It’s the first snowfall of the year,” the girl commented as if she could read his thoughts. Kaito grinned at her.

“Come on, let’s get you your book.”

It didn’t take Kaito more than three minutes to find the girl’s book. It was on a high shelf, but not high enough for Kaito to go fetch the little stool. He could reach it by standing on his tip-toes. By the time he had the book in his hands, the girl’s face was as red as a beet, and her eyes were glued to Kaito’s waist.

“Uhm, are you okay?” Kaito asked, not knowing if he should feel uncomfortable or worried about the girl. She was still staring at him, why in the world- oh, right. The shirt he was wearing had a tendency to roll up if he so much as lifted his arms. Right.

Just as Kaito was thinking about what to say next, he felt a hand sliding around his waist and lower arm. Kudo was by his side; he had his customer smile on, the one that seemed a little too forced to be comfortable. “If that would be all, miss, please come with me so I can charge you.”

The girl, finally, got out of her stupor and peered at Kudo. She noticed Kudo’s arm around Kaito’s waist and immediately afterwards she avoided both of their eyes in shame. “Y-yes!”

Kudo took the book from Kaito’s hand before leading the girl towards the register. Kaito tried not to feel disappointed about the brief duration of the contact.

It was only after the bookshop closed about forty minutes later that they spoke again.

“So,” Kudo started, sweeping the floor as was mandatory for him to do after his shift. “That girl was pretty.”

Kaito looked at him from the corner of his eyes. He was cleaning the windows, so it was hard for them to see face to face unless they stopped working. He winked at Kudo when their eyes met through their reflections. “No prettier than you, dear.”

Kudo averted his eyes. Feeling like something was wrong, Kaito turned around to face him and dropped the cloth he had been cleaning with.

“Wait a minute, are you jealous?” He asked curiously. Kudo’s body tensed and a blush spread through his cheeks. “Oh my god, you are.”

“I’m not!” Kudo defended, even though the blush on his face made it clear he was lying.

Kaito smiled, walking a few steps towards the other teen. “Come to one of my magic shows. You’ll like it.” He offered again. He’d made the same offer every day for the last three weeks, but Kudo always refused right away. This time, though, he sighed.

“You know I don’t like magic.” He said as he left the broom leaning against the wall, and then he did something Kaito didn’t expect. Kudo walked towards him, took his hands with his own, and leaned in to leave a chaste kiss on Kaito’s cheek. “But I’ll go if you let me buy you dinner afterwards.”

Kaito’s smile was so big his face began to hurt. “You got yourself a deal, Detective.”


End file.
